League teams to head to Palm Island

Young footballers from 11 schools will get to play five games of rugby league in a day at the Obe Geia Junior Rugby League Challenge on Palm Island next week.

The draw for the carnival on Thursday has been released and features three teams from Palm Island schools St Michael's and Bwgcolman, as well as teams from Townsville District schools Heatley, St Joseph's, Magnetic Island, Good Shepherd, Shalom, Rasmussen, Vincent, Marian and Kelso.

The Challenge, now in its third year, is a partnership between the Palm Island community, the North Queensland Toyota Cowboys, the NRL All Stars Game, the Department of Sport and Recreation and the Palm Island PCYC and is hosted and run by the Palm Island community.

Each young footballer has earned the right to play in the carnival thanks to their regular attendance and positive behaviour at school all year.

The venue, Palm Island Rugby League Club (The Farm), will be divided into two mod-sized fields with each match to be played over 15 minutes.

It's a unique carnival for the kids from Palm Island, who get the chance to play some home games in front of their family and friends, and the youngsters from the mainland, who travel two hours by ferry to play on the picturesque island north-east of Townsville.